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Ya'alon belittles Obama's policy on Iran

Jun. 10, 2009
hilary leila krieger, jpost correspondent in washington , THE JERUSALEM POST

Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon.

 

Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) delivered a blistering attack on the Obama administration's Middle East policies Tuesday, suggesting that its approach toward Iran and the Palestinian Authority were flawed.

"Just like the new administration, we too believe that friends should be candid with each other," he said during an address at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. "It is our duty to explain to our American friends our concerns."

He was referring to comments that US President Barack Obama and other officials have made recently about the need to be clear with Israel that certain policies, such as settlement expansion, aren't acceptable.

The American declarations have fed tensions between the US and Israel, and Ya'alon's hardline speech suggested that the gulf between the countries won't be bridged any time soon.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is set to deliver a major policy speech next week, which some observers have predicted he will present a softening of positions as the two countries move from taking each other's measure to working on shared interests.

But Ya'alon's address, which some are reading as a preview of Netanyahu's delivery, contrasted sharply with the views of the White House.

At the same time, Ya'alon is a strong right-wing voice in the Likud, so his speech could also be read as a message to Netanyahu to hold the line.

Though the minister for strategic affairs and former IDF chief of staff couched his comments as taking on the "conventional wisdom" of the mainstream media, he belittled the notion that dialogue would dampen Iranian nuclear ambitions or that it made sense to aggressively pursue the creation of a Palestinian state.

He argued that policy toward the Palestinians should instead focus on a "bottom up" approach of economic, political, security and education reform to lay the groundwork for a functioning Palestinian entity.

Asked about the possibility of a final status resolution within two years, as some Arab media have reported the US administration desires, Ya'alon responded, "It's not a realistic goal, not at all, and we should say so very clearly.

"If in two years' time we will have a political settlement, I believe we will witness Hamastan in the West Bank, and we are not going to implement it," he said.

As for Iran, which Obama has sought to engage through a series of diplomatic overtures, Ya'alon assessed: "If this can be achieved through negotiations and dialogue, wonderful. Since we doubt it very much, we believe the free world, under the leadership of the United States, needs to prepare all the options to deal with this problem and make it clear that it will be ready to use them." He referred to a "credible threat" as the approach most likely to move Iran.

Though speaking generally about Western overtures, Ya'alon also seemed to take a swipe at last week's Cairo address in which the US president expressed regret for Western actions against Muslim states and sought to turn a new page on US-Muslim relations.

Ya'alon said that the West expects that concessions and apologies made to the Arab world will generate reciprocal moves, when instead, "It just strengthens their conviction of victim-hood and their resolve to restore their honor."

Yet Ya'alon, when asked about some of his harsh words in the Q&A portion of Tuesday's event, played down any differences with the Obama administration and denied that his words were a critique of the new president.

"We might disagree about the way to reach the goals, but I believe we share the same goals in the long run," he said, stressing that "Israel considers itself a part and parcel of the free world and is committed to its strategic relationship with the United States."

Ya'alon will be meeting with US National Security Adviser James Jones and Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as members of Congress, but his trip was planned well in advance and not specifically timed to Netanyahu's address, according to the Israeli Embassy. The official purpose of the trip was to deliver Tuesday's Zeev Schiff Memorial Lecture on Middle East Security at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

When asked at the lecture whether the White House and Jerusalem were on the same page when it came to Iran, he replied, "I hope so," to audience laughter. He then added that the Netanyahu was "very satisfied" with his discussions with Obama on that point during his Washington visit last month. He listed several points of agreement, including the need for benchmarks and a timeframe for negotiations, the notion that Iran would not be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon and that all options must remain on the table.

"In this regard we share the same view," he said.

Israel tells Mitchell it won't halt natural growth in settlements

Jun. 9, 2009
Herb Keinon , THE JERUSALEM POST

Lieberman and Mitchell at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, Tuesday

 

While outwardly US envoy George Mitchell tried to downplay tensions between Washington and Jerusalem, the settlement construction issue continued to be a central source of contention when Mitchell met with Israel's leaders on Tuesday.

Mitchell, during a day of meetings that included four hours with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, was told that Israel would not bring all settlement construction to a complete halt, even though this continues to be the US's stated position.

One senior official said that there appeared to be some "convergence" between the sides, and they were moving toward a definition of the issues.

Following the evening meeting with Mitchell, which included a two-hour one-on-one conversation, Netanyahu's office issued a statement that the meeting was "friendly and positive and encompassed the whole range of issues on the agenda."

Netanyahu, according to the statement, said that "Israel is working to promote peace and security with our Palestinian neighbors and the wider Arab world."

In front of the cameras, Mitchell took pains to stress the importance of the US-Israeli relationship, and Washington's commitment to Israel's security.

Mitchell, after a meeting earlier in the day with President Shimon Peres, said he wanted to state again "clearly and emphatically, beyond any doubt, that the United States' commitment to the security of Israel remains unshakeable."

He stressed that the current disagreements "are not disagreements among adversaries. The United States and Israel are and will remain close allies and friends. My meetings today with the president and other Israeli officials are discussions among friends who share a common set of objectives: Peace, security and prosperity to all the people of this region."

Mitchell said the objective of the Obama administration was a "comprehensive peace in the Middle East," including "a Palestinian state side by side in peace and security with the Jewish State of Israel. The president and the secretary of state have made our policy clear. Israelis and Palestinians have a responsibility to meet their obligations under the road map. It's not just their responsibility. We believe it's in their security interest as well."

Giving voice to the Obama administration's focus on the regional element of the diplomatic process, Mitchell said the US was engaged in "serious discussions" with Israel, the Palestinians and regional partners in the hopes of creating the conditions "for the prompt resumption and early conclusion of negotiations."

In an apparent indication of the regional context to the diplomatic process Obama wants to launch, the State Department announced that Mitchell - who will hold meetings with the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah on Wednesday - was scheduled to go to Lebanon on Thursday and to Damascus on Friday and Saturday. This will be Mitchell's first visit to Syria since he was appointed envoy in January, though two senior administration officials - Jeffrey Feltman and Dan Shapiro - have visited Damascus twice.

One Israeli official said that while the thrust of the Shapiro and Feltman visits had focused on bilateral Syrian-US ties, Mitchell - in light of his position - was expected to concentrate on the Israeli-Syrian track.

In advance of Mitchell's trip, Syrian President Bashar Assad has expressed renewed interest in restarting preliminary contacts with Israel through Turkey.

"President Bashar Assad told his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul once again when he visited Syria (last month) of Damascus's firm and continuing support for Ankara's mediation efforts and its confidence in their impartiality," Syria's ambassador to Turkey, Nidal Kabalan, told AFP.

Assad also told Gul he had sent a similar message to European envoys, Kabalan said, adding: "It is now up to them [the Israelis]."

Though many expect the US to seize the results and push more aggressively for peace between Israel and Syria, with the Mitchell trip a sign of that effort, Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon argued Tuesday that conditions were not ripe for a deal with Syria.

He said that previous negotiations between Jerusalem and Damascus took place in the 1990s under a different leader - current Syrian President Bashar Assad's father Hafez - and were conducted with the understanding that a peace with Israel would mean Syria broke its relations with Iran and stopped supporting Hizbullah.

"His son's behaving in a very different way," he told the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, describing Israeli officials as suspicious of his overtures.

Regarding Mitchell's trip to Lebanon, Israeli officials said this had more to do with Lebanon's recent elections, and a US desire to send a message of support to Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, than any efforts to start an as-yet nonexistent Lebanese-Israeli track.

The officials also said it would be unlikely for Israel to make any concessions toward the Lebanese regarding the Shaba Farms area or the village of Ghajar until it became clear whether or not Hizbullah would be part of the upcoming government. If Hizbullah were in the government, any gestures regarding the Shaba Farms or Ghajar would be unlikely, the sources noted.

One issue that has been discussed extensively in Jerusalem is the possibility of pulling out of the northern part of Ghajar, which straddles the Israeli-Lebanese border.

Regarding the Palestinian issue, Peres, whom Mitchell met in the morning, said there were four important points that needed to be emphasized on the road to peace: "a two-state solution based on the road map, the clear maintenance of Israel's security, independence for the Palestinians, and implementation of a comprehensive regional peace between Israel and the Arab countries of the Middle East."

Diplomatic sources, who said it was likely that Peres was foreshadowing Netanyahu's address on Sunday at Bar-Ilan University, said that while it was likely that Netanyahu would nod toward the notion of a Palestinian state in his speech, he was unlikely to say "two states for two peoples," because this was a slogan that had become too closely identified with opposition leader Tzipi Livni.

Likewise, the sources said Netanyahu was expected to stay clear of the term "natural growth" in relation to construction in the settlements in his speech, because this had become a term now associated with conflict with the US.

Peres, however, did use the term after meeting Mitchell, saying, "There is agreement in Israel regarding the evacuation of illegal outposts and not to build new settlements. However, the issue of natural growth in the settlement blocs must continue to be discussed intensively in order to reach agreement. In my experience, focusing on a single issue ill serves the wider diplomatic process, which is supposed to set the agenda for Israel and its neighbors."

In addition to meeting Netanyahu and Peres, Mitchell also met during the day with Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, where - in addition to discussing the settlements - the meetings also dealt with Iran and the elections in Lebanon.

In a related development, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana is scheduled to arrive in Jerusalem on Wednesday on the first leg of a five-day regional tour that will also take him to the PA, Lebanon and Egypt.

Meanwhile, in what was intended to be a major policy address at the Council for Peace and Security in Ramat Gan, Barak praised Obama as "assertive, self-confident and hugely popular" and said Israel should cooperate with him in the pursuit of an all-inclusive regional accord.

Barak called Obama's efforts to bring an an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict "an exceptional opportunity," and said it would be right for Israel to adequately consider its path and properly navigate inside this series of challenges and opportunities."

"It would not be right for Israel to get in the way of American efforts to form a Palestinian state according to the vision of two states for two peoples," Barak said. "There is no guarantee that the attempt to establish two states would succeed, because it is not dependent only on Israel. But our government must fulfill the obligations of previous ones. Preventing negotiations on a Palestinian state could lead to there being one state for two peoples."

Barak stressed that Israel and the US were allowed to disagree, but he expressed hope that if Israel worked correctly, it could become fully coordinated with Obama's government on diplomatic issues.

Gil Hoffman and Hilary Leila Krieger contributed to this report.

 

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